Focus on Done
The more we understand what ‘done’ looks like, the more we are able to understand what time and resources will be required to achieve our goal. We are also likely to be better informed about what might hold us back and what might accelerate our progress. Conversely, if we don’t have a clear idea of what ‘done’ looks like, we are likely to over or underestimate the task ahead of us.
In a Nutshell
When we set out to achieve a goal we are aiming for success and completion. We don’t want to get to the end and realise that our efforts have only led us to ‘half-done’, ‘incomplete’ and/or ‘unsatisfactory’. However, without a clear definition of what ‘done’ looks like, that is the most likely scenario.
In order to plan what resources and time we will need to achieve a particular goal, we will need to understand what activities will need to be completed and what standards the customer is expecting.
To help us with this, we can create a ‘definition of done’ and work with our stakeholders to understand their ‘acceptance criteria’:
Practices
Product Backlog Refinement is a Scrum activity that is performed on the Product Backlog. The scrum guide defines Product Backlog Refinement as the act of breaking down and further defining Product Backlog items into smaller more precise items. This is an ongoing activity to add details, such as a description, order, and size. Attributes often vary with the domain of work.
The Product Backlog is the vehicle by which needs are turned into requirements and requirements are turned into operational features in our product. It is a prioritised list of the work that the team currently intends to deliver in the next period of time. The less imminent a feature is, the less well it will be defined.
Practices to come:
Delivery review
Sustain workflow policies